Name:

van der Merwe, Peter Laurence

Nickname:

Murphy

Date of Birth:

14 Mar 1937

Gender:

Men

Place of Birth:

Paarl, Cape Province, South Africa

Date Died:

23 Jan 2013

Career:

Test: 1963 - 1967
First Class: 1956 - 1968

Teams:

Warriors Eastern Cape (Regional)
South Africa (Country)

Graeme Pollock smashes England to gain series win (1966)

Accountant who led South Africa to series wins against England and Australia

Peter van der Merwe was born on 14 March 1937 and died aged 76 on 23 January 2013. He was a bespectacled right hand middle order batsman and left arm spinner.

Van der Merwe was educated at St Andrew's College in Grahamstown and at the University of Cape Town and earned the nickname of "Murphy" after a team sponsor on the 1961 tour of England.

He played in fifteen Tests from 1963 to 1967 and led South Africa to series wins in England (1965) and against Australia at home (1966/67). He was an attacking skipper who inspired a talented team to unleash their full potential and is judged as one of South Africa's most successful Test captains.

He scored 533 runs at 25.38 in Tests with a highest score of 76 against Australia in the 1st Test in 1966/67.

His brother in law - J W H Waite - also played for South Africa.

After retirement, he was a cricket administrator and also South Africa's first national convener of selectors after re-admission in 1991. He also served the game internationally as an ICC match referee for eight years.

Source: CricketCrowd Staff Reporter